


What Happens in New Vegas...

by Alyson



Series: 101 Ways to Fall [6]
Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Canonical Character Death, Explicit Sexual Content, Fluff, For now :(, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, McCoy didn't join Star Fleet, Pike Lives, Star Trek Beyond, Vulcan Survived, alternative universe
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-29
Updated: 2017-04-29
Packaged: 2018-10-25 10:39:44
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10762581
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alyson/pseuds/Alyson
Summary: When Jim Kirk wakes up at the end of shore leave with a headache and laying next to a man he's never met before, he figures it's just your typical shore leave shenanigans.  Leonard McCoy believes the same thing as he bids the stranger that just woke him up good bye.  For all of ten minutes.  But, come hell or high water, they're going to see this to the end.  They're both stubborn like that.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: Spoilers Ahead! For all three movies. I changed the timeline and several other points of the Kelvin Time Line for my own nefarious purposes. Dr. McCoy did not join Star Fleet. He handled his divorce with a little more aplomb, didn't just let her have everything, and spent a few more years in practice in Georgia before finally getting sick of it and starting to travel the galaxy giving lectures. I've decided that with McCoy not at the Academy, Kirk was able to concentrate instead of acting out because he was fighting his attraction to Bones (yeah, I know, reaching). He reprogrammed the Kobyashi Maru on the second try so was able to successfully defend his tactic before the attack on Vulcan and served as Second Officer of the Enterprise and was able to warn them much sooner about the lightning storm in space, saving most of the Fleet and Pike. He was nearly given his own ship, but Pike convinced the Admirals that wanted to that Kirk needed a little more experience and so they made him a First Officer. He was going to end up on another ship, but Spock, who was not really interested in command so much, asked that he be made the Head of Sciences Division and Second Officer so Kirk could remain on the Enterprise. Therefor, when he went to Nibiru, Pike was in charge and they did not stop the volcano, obeying the Prime Directive instead (despite Kirk's arguments and even Spock backing him up, but as Pike said, he wouldn't put his officer in danger by dropping him in a volcano). So after Kahn blew up the facility in London, Kirk attended the meeting as Pike's First Officer and was sitting next to him and able to tackle him out of harm's way. Kahn is still hiding somewhere in Klingon space, Admiral Marcus is still in charge and all of that's waiting to bite them in the ass later. So now they're about to embark on the five year mission.... (Oh, and Yorktown is going to built earlier and Altamid will happen earlier, putting Kirk as getting his commission at 29, in concurrence with the original time line.) And their comm addresses are something I totally made up with no references.

Commander Kirk, First Officer of the USS Enterprise, woke up with the mother of all hangovers. He was at the end of his shore leave on New Vegas, so that really wasn't a surprise. What was a surprise was the softly snoring man he found next to him. He could only see his back since the stranger was laying on his stomach, arms folded around the pillow his face was buried in, but what he could see brought a smile to his lips despite the headache. The man was dark haired with a broad back and freckles across his wide shoulders. His long torso ended in a tapered waist and, thanking any gods who may be listening that he didn't have a sheet covering him, easily the most beautiful ass he had ever seen. Kirk tilted his head for a better look. Yep, looked like he had tapped that. Felt like he had been tapped in return. He sighed, wishing he had more than just shadowy recollections of hot flesh and steamy kisses.

He got out of the bed quietly, hoping not to wake the man. He had probably drunk as much as he had and Jim was at least polite enough to let him sleep it off a little while longer. He shrugged on his clothes from the night before, giving up on finding his underwear and just pulling his slacks on over his bare behind, before reaching for the comm unit he had at least had the presence of mind to place on the night stand. Looking at the time, he cursed, disturbing the stranger's sleep. The man rolled over, and with a curse of his own, sat up, treating Kirk to the sight of a muscular, dark haired chest, an extremely handsome face and pretty hazel eyes. He suddenly wished he wasn't running so late. He would have loved to make some actual memories with the man.

“Sorry, didn't mean to wake you,” Kirk said, his voice rough from just waking. “Thought you might have a hangover like mine.”

The man scowled at him, then scowled at the room at large, looking around. It was suddenly clear that this was his room, not a room they had gotten for the night, as he got up, letting Jim get a good look at long, muscular legs, and opened the closet, pulling a black bag from the upper shelf. He placed it on his bed and dug around, bringing out a hypo that he shot in his own neck, then another one that he loaded with something and approached Kirk with. Jim took a hasty step back, holding his hands up.

“Whoa, man, what is that? I don't do drugs.”

The man stopped and Jim could actually see the fog lift from his eyes and the pain leave his head. His eyes widened a bit and he looked around again, finding his boxers and hurriedly putting them on while explaining himself.

“Sorry, man,” he said with a deep, honeyed voice that had the sexiest accent Kirk had ever heard. Definitely from Earth, the Southern US, he believed. “Guess we didn't get a chance to introduce ourselves last night. Or we don't remember. Doctor Leonard McCoy. And this is a hangover concoction of my own design. It contains a mild pain killer as well as a low tri-ox compound and concentrated saline to help with dehydration. You don't have to take it, but it will help.”

Jim thought for just a moment. He vaguely remembered picking the man up outside of a conference center that was hosting a medical seminar and the name Leonard McCoy being on the holographic billboard outside. He also vaguely remembered drinking with him and being told about a recent divorce and picking up the pieces after the bitch had tried to, and he was pretty sure he was quoting, 'pick my bones.' The man had managed to keep his family home and private practice but had wanted to get the hell out of there so started a conference tour, despite hating space travel. He still wasn't sure if he should be trusting what was in that hypo, but McCoy carried himself in a way that gave Jim confidence that he was indeed the doctor he claimed to be and that he could trust him.

“Jim Kirk,” he replied, “and thanks, I'd be glad to take that. My head is killing me.”

With a smirk, 'Bones', as he was now calling him in his head, pressed the hypo into his neck, causing Jim to jump.

“Damnit, I don't remember it hurting when other doctors do that.”

“Stop being an infant,” McCoy rolled his eyes and sat back down on his bed. “Some compounds hurt more going in than others.”

“Oh, ok, sorry. Well, it was nice meeting you, and with any luck I'll remember more of last night later cause I'm thinking last night was nice, too. Sorry I can't stay and get to know you again, but I've got to ship out today and I'm already running late.”

“No problem,” he waved him away. “Have a safe trip.”

“Thanks, you too.”

Jim wasn't sure if that was the appropriate response but the doctor was already gathering up his clothing and just waved him off again. So Jim left, heading out of the hotel and catching a cab back to his own, without looking back.

*~*~*~*

Leonard threw his dirty clothes into his bag after pulling out his clean clothing, and headed into the bathroom for a much needed shower. In his head he berated himself for bringing a stranger back to his room and having sex with him. From the state of his bed and his body they had had sex multiple times. He was also pretty sure they hadn't used protection. Idiot. He'd have to get tested. 

Ever since the divorce he hadn't had his head on straight. He had managed to stop himself from succumbing to his first instinct, to drown himself in the bottom of a bottle and letting the ex have whatever she wanted, but he was still doing foolish things. Like signing up to travel the galaxy giving lectures on the latest advances in neurosurgery just because he couldn't stand to be around those who used to be their mutual friends anymore. And now he clearly had a new hobby – picking up strangers and having a night of wild sex while so drunk he's surprised he was able to get it up even once.

Well, that couldn't be repeated.

After a quick shower, he packed up the rest of his things, getting ready to check out. Jim wasn't the only one who needed to ship out. He had two more lectures before he could head back to Earth and keep his feet on solid ground from then on. His quick, efficient movements were stopped when he began to gather his wallet and watch off of the dresser. Sitting there, side by side, were two cheap looking, thin gold bands, one only slightly smaller than the other. He picked the larger one up with a scowl and slid it on his left ring finger. It fit.

“God damnit!”

*~*~*~*

Jim reported to the Enterprise twenty minutes late. Unsurprisingly, Captain Pike was waiting for him. What was a surprise was the good humored smirk on his face instead of the anger he had been expecting.

“Late night, Commander?” he asked as Jim stepped off the transporter pad.

“Yes, sir,” he replied, then turned a contrite face to his commanding officer. “I'm sorry for being so late, sir...”

“Don't worry about it,” Pike interrupted. “This time. We need to shove off, Commander, so let's get to the Bridge and get the hell out of here.”

Kirk decided not to press his suddenly good luck. He had been serving as First Officer under Pike ever since he, the Captain and Commander Spock, the current Head of the Sciences Division and Second Officer, saved Vulcan and Earth from the renegade Nero... the Romulan who had killed his father. Over the past two years they had built a rapport and now they were shipping off for the much coveted five year mission. He was just going to assume that was what was putting Pike in such a good mood and get on with his duties.

“Mr. Sulu,” Pike announced as he sat in the Center Seat and Kirk took up his position beside him, “please inform space dock that we have all wayward crew members and we are ready to leave.”

“Aye, sir,” Sulu replied. He turned back to his console, but not before giving Kirk a smile and a wink. 

Confused, Kirk looked over at Chekov, who had also turned at their arrival and not yet turned back. Once they made eye contact, the younger man gave him an excited smile and a double thumbs up before turning back to his station. Now even more confused, Kirk looked around the Bridge. Everyone he made eye contact with, even Spock at the Science Station, gave him some kind of smile or wave. A horrified thought occurred to him. Had Pike exacted revenge on him being late by telling everyone that Kirk had had a one night stand with a stranger he couldn't clearly remember picking up? How did he even know about Bones? That would explain the good mood of the Captain and the behavior of the crew. That taught Kirk not to be late again like nothing else ever would.

*~*~*~*

Leonard had put both rings in his carry-on and boarded the shuttle to Alpha Centauri. He put it out of his head as best he could and spent the ride preparing for his next lecture, his new coping method for surviving the shuttle flight. He had actually forgotten his suspicions about himself and the mysterious Jim Kirk until he landed on Alpha Centauri and all of his comm transmissions that had been delayed in transit came streaming into his PADD. The checkout confirmation was enough to make him remember, but there, beneath a message from his mother, was a message from Star Fleet Family Resources entitled 'Congratulations on Your Recent Nuptials.'

“He's in Star Fleet?” he muttered to himself. “Fuck me. And we DID get married. Fuck my life.”

Once he got to his hotel room and settled in, he planned to look up how to annul the marriage, and who to contact to complain to about not having safeguards in place to prevent drunken marriages on New Vegas, but when he pulled out his PADD to do just that, his messages were still open and the email from Star Fleet was staring at him in the face. Curiosity was a powerful thing in him, and he opened it and began to read.

And discovered that there were a few benefits to being a Star Fleet spouse. Free travel, access to Star Fleet bases all over the Federation and the use of their amenities just like what enlisted personnel would have. Well, officers, in his case. His new husband was an officer. The First Officer of the USS Enterprise he found out as he kept reading. Leonard felt his face heat up. He couldn't believe he was damaged enough to be getting excited he had married a high ranking officer of the Federation's flag ship. Accidentally married, he reminded himself. If he didn't annul the marriage, he was sure that Kirk would.

But he couldn't resist reading on. He really didn't care about most of what was in the packet (though he could check out of the flea bag hotel he had been set up in for this leg of the tour and go up to the orbital base and get a much nicer room at no cost) but one item did catch his eye. He qualified for employment assistance. They would help him find a job, one of those prime postings on a base, that only Star Fleet personnel could be stationed at, or a civilian spouse could be hired on for. He could work as a civilian doctor with Star Fleet Medical, have first access to new research, be part of cutting edge medical science, without having to sign his life away to Star Fleet. It was advertised to allow families to be together as much as possible, but Leonard was seeing it as a next step in his career.

Now that he really didn't have any ties to Earth.

He threw the PADD aside in frustration. There was no way he should be even thinking that way. As much as he didn't want another failed marriage under his belt, he knew this Commander Kirk would never agree to stay married to him. He decided he would just leave it in Kirk's hands. He could probably get an annulment faster than he could, anyhow. In the meantime, though, he would be spending nearly a week on Alpha Centauri. He might as well spend it somewhere nicer.

*~*~*~*

A week later, the only new messages on Leonard's PADD were congratulations from various crew members of the Enterprise that enthused about his marriage and told him about their friendship with the Commander, hoping that he too would become a good friend in time. He even got a letter like that from the ship's Captain and Second Officer. With a confused scowl, Leonard sent out a message of his own to the Captain, requesting a personal call as soon as the man had a moment.

*~*~*~*

He was back on Earth by the time the Enterprise was in a sector of space that would allow for a face to face call. As it was, Leonard had to be up at one in the morning his time to take the call. He was up and wide awake, though. It had been over two weeks and he still hadn't heard from Kirk. No message, no legal papers, nothing. It was as if the guy didn't remember he existed. Not that Leonard had sent him a message, either, but the crew seemed to think this was a real marriage. Was Kirk telling them it was? What the hell was going on?

“Hello, Dr. McCoy, I'm Captain Pike, Jim's commanding officer. I'm glad to have heard from you but I was concerned to hear you had a problem. How can I help you?”

“Well, sir, I was concerned because I hadn't heard from Mr. Kirk.”

“We have been rather busy, Dr. McCoy.”

“That's not what I meant, sir,” Leonard back peddled, regretting his choice of words that made it sound like he was a whiny cry baby missing his husband and disturbing the Captain over it. “I meant I was expecting Mr. Kirk to have annulled the marriage by now. I would contact him, but I'm really concerned that the rest of your crew seems to think we did this on purpose and plan on staying married. I was just wondering if you knew what was going through the young idiot's head before I contacted him or filed for an annulment myself.”

For a brief moment, a look of confusion crossed Captain Pike's face, then a wicked grin broke out instead.

“You two had a drunk one night stand and didn't even know you had gotten married,” he stated.

“Yes sir. And I only know because Star Fleet sent me a welcome letter. Well, and I found the cheap rings the chapel must have provided. I expected he would find out from a letter as well. Or some kind of alert letting him know of the change in his marital status.”

“Nope,” Pike grinned. “I'm extremely sure he doesn't even know. He wouldn't have gotten that kind of flag, he's expected to know he got married. But I got the notification. That's why I didn't reprimand him for being late that morning, holding us up from launching on our five year mission. Ha! He was late! While Mr. Chekov was giving the mission briefing, I got the alert and handed it over, allowing him to make a ship wide announcement! That's why the crew knows and he doesn't. I am never letting him live this down.”

“Wow,” McCoy chuckled. “That's a whole heap of bad luck. Ok, I guess I should file for the annulment. By the time he finds out he's married, it will be half way done.”

“Now, don't be hasty,” Pike interjected, a shrewd look crossing his face. “When you two got married, I received a file on you, and I'm always interested in the lives of my crew, so I actually sat down and read it. I was surprised, and proud, that that boy actually landed a man of your professional quality. It doesn't say much about you personally, but it does show your research and philanthropic work. I think that shows a lot about your personality right there. It also showed your divorce and how your career slowed down afterwards.”

“Well, sir, those two things may have been related, but only due to my emotional state. My career hardly depends on my marital status.”

“Yes, which led me to believe that the divorce wasn't your choice.”

“No, sir,” he reluctantly admitted.

“I realize this is a different situation, but I can't imagine you'd want to go through that again,” Pike leaned on his arms, getting closer to his monitor. “Listen, son, Jim Kirk is a good man and I can't think of one who would be better to be someone's husband. I know you don't know each other, but the minute I saw your file I just knew that he had found someone that would be compatible, a real partner for him. Not some unfocused twink or floozy that would be sending him daily messages crying for him to come home. You're more mature, you have a career, you'd be a steadying influence on him.”

“Why on earth does he need a steadying influence?” Leonard asked, truly confused. “He's young but he's your First Officer. Sounds like he's got his head on straight.”

“You don't know who he is, do you?”

“Um, no. I thought that was clear.”

“Good lord, man, do you even read the news?”

“Not if I can help it. I stick the scientific reports and journals.”

“Well, you heard of a little someone known as the Kelvin Baby?”

“Ok,” Leonard said, eyes going wide. “I have heard of the Kelvin. And I knew the name of the sacrificing officer and his newborn baby was Kirk but I didn't really put two and two together.”

“And do you remember the whole Nero incident? The madman who tried to destroy Vulcan? Well, that's how Kirk became my First Officer. To be honest, I don't think he was really ready for that promotion, right out of the Academy, but they almost made him a Captain, so, small mercies.”

“That's crazy!”

“Exactly,” Pike agreed, eyeing McCoy carefully. “You're a doctor; a damn good doctor. There is a position opening soon on a new star base currently being built, the Yorktown. It's right on the edge of the Frontier. The positions are highly coveted and the chance for research is phenomenal. Only Star Fleet personnel are being considered for postings there. Personnel, and their qualified spouses. Your credentials and Kirk's position on a ship exploring the Frontier would easily get you one of those positions. But only if you don't annul the marriage.”

“I can't believe I'm doing this,” Leonard complained, but mostly to himself. “Ok, you've got a deal. But what about Kirk? Surly he's not going to want to stay married once he finds out.”

“Oh, you just leave him to me. And McCoy? After I talk to him I'm going to have him send you a message. I'd really appreciate if you'd play the part of the good husband and write him back. Weekly should suffice.”

“Yes sir.”

*~*~*~*

“Pike to Kirk.”

“Hold on guys,” Kirk said, standing up from the table in the rec room where he had been playing a hand of poker with some of the other officers, and went over to the comm unit in the wall. “Kirk here.”

“Commander, I need you to report to my quarters at your earliest convenience.”

“Aye, Captain. Kirk out.”

Jim went back to the table to make his excuses. It was a real pity. They had been so busy he hadn't gotten a chance for any type of recreation since they headed out, and now he had to leave a game he had just joined. The cards had barely been dealt when the call from Pike had come in. That said, it didn't sound like an emergency, and Lt. Comm. Meyers was looking pretty good. He hadn't had ANY kind of recreation since shore leave. He felt he could take a moment to see if she were busy later.

“Sorry guys, duty calls, again. Hey, Connie, can I talk to you a moment before I leave?”

“Sure,” she said, handing her cards back to the dealer so the hand could be reshuffled. “What's up, Jim?”

“We haven't had a chance to talk since we got back from shore leave.”

“No, we hadn't, and we were all hoping we could ask you about yours.”

“Really? Well, it was uneventful,” he lied, not wanting to admit to the one night stand he barely remembered. “I was hoping we could meet up later, maybe in my quarters, relive the last time you and I were on shore leave together.”

As he spoke, he had gotten closer to her, moving seductively and giving her his best come hither smile. Suffice it to say, he was shocked when she slapped him.

“James Kirk! You're an asshole!”

“Wha- what?”

“Lt. Comm., would you please explain why you just struck the Commander?” a very familiar voice questioned behind them.

“It's ok, Spock,” Kirk said, nursing his cheek. “It happened during a personal exchange.”

“He propositioned me,” she spat.

“That's never been a problem before!”

Spock looked at the angry Meyers in surprise, but nodded at her in understanding.

“Commander, if I could have a word.”

“Sure, Spock, but we're off duty, and the same rank. Call me Jim.”

“Jim, then.”

“Walk with me, the Captain had asked me to report to his quarters for some reason. What did you want to talk to me about?”

“Your propositioning Lt. Comm. Meyers,” Spock replied stiffly as they headed to the turbolift.

“What? I know that it's technically fraternization, but Connie and I have been having casual sex for months, I would never hold it against her or play favorites, and you really have no room to talk, what with you and Lt. Uhura. Besides, I don't know why she was so violently opposed to meeting up with me, she could have just said no, but I'm not going to report the slap. I hope you won't either.”

“I most certainly won't, as I am with Ms. Meyers and am tempted to slap you myself.”

“What for?” Kirk whined at him, stopping in front of the door to the Captain's quarters and pressing the door chime.

“Come!” they heard from within and the door slid open.

“For attempting to cheat on your new husband.”

“Oh for... Spock, I wanted to tell him.”

“What?” Kirk asked, eyes darting between Spock and Pike. “What husband? I'm not married.”

“Oh, but you are,” Pike said, giving him the same wicked smile he had given Leonard. “Does New Vegas, a few too many and waking up with tall, dark and handsome ring any bells?”

“Ok, yes, but -”

“Seems you two got married before doing the deed. Rather honorable of you, I must say.”

Jim stood in the middle of the room in utter shock, ignoring Pike's sarcasm and evil delight in what was happening. Instead, Jim's brain was finally feeding him a few more pieces of the night in question. The handsome doctor crying into his drink about his heart being ripped out, sloppy kisses outside, on the sidewalk in front of a building with garish neon, and Jim making promises that he'd show him how it was done. Right then, in Pike's living room, he didn't think he had meant sex, but love and marriage. Jim felt sick. How could he, even drunk, think that was a good idea?

“It's been over two weeks,” he said quietly, his voice almost gone, as Spock helped him into a seat. “I haven't seen any paperwork for an annulment. Why haven't I seen any paperwork for an annulment?”

“He was wondering the same thing,” Pike admitted. “I think he was waiting for you to make the first move because he didn't really want to get an annulment. It was, after all, easy enough to talk him out of it.”

“What?”

“I said I talked him out of annulling the marriage,” Pike suddenly looked deadly serious. “James T. Kirk, you're a whore.”

“Huh?”

“Captain,” Spock finally spoke up. “I agree he can be a little promiscuous, but I don't think calling Jim a whore is fair. His partners have always known he would be moving on, he has never led anyone on.”

“You sound like you speak from experience,” Pike smirked, then wished he hadn't when Spock raised an eyebrow and tilted his head. Had they?... No, not worth thinking about. “I'm not calling him a whore, but other members of Star Fleet do. Important members. You know, Admirals, ones who will determine when, or if, you'll get your own ship.”

He directed this last comment to Kirk.

“But, they wanted to give me a ship before,” he said, having recovered his voice, but having gone terribly pale.

“Yes, but that was fresh off a victory and before your reputation started making it's way outside of the Academy. Honestly, son, you have a terrible reputation. At least, you did, before news of this marriage hit. Do you know who you married?”

“Um, he said his name was Leonard McCoy, and he's a doctor.”

“Dr. Leonard Horatio McCoy,” Pike began reading from the PADD he had picked up. “Youngest doctor to graduate, with honors, from the University of Mississippi, youngest Neurosurgeon in the Federation, he developed a technique for bypassing the neurotransmitters in... good lord, I don't even know what that means. The man is only six years older than you but he has a maturity that you lack, plus he may be more of a genius than you are. He has published two dozen papers and is a highly sought after lecturer, which is why you met him when you did. I have received four communications from the Admiralty expressing their hope that this means you have grown up and settled down.”

“In other words, if I want my own ship, I better stay married.”

“That's right. I can't force you, but I strongly encourage it.”

Kirk sat in stunned silence for a moment before an important issue occurred to him.

“Hey, if everyone knows I'm married, where are the presents?”

“Where are you registered?” Spock countered.

Pike burst out laughing. It took him several minutes to calm down enough to finish filling Kirk in on his conversation with McCoy and tell him that his new husband would be expecting a message from him. Once dismissed, Jim walked out of the Captain's quarters with Spock and stopped at his own quarters next to Pike's.

“You let Pike believe we'd slept together,” he laughed.

“I made no such claim,” Spock replied, an air of haughtiness coloring his voice but his eyes flashing in amusement. “If he assumed that from my silence, that is his problem.”

“Damn, Spock, I'm a bad influence on you.”

“That you are,” he agreed. “Goodnight, Jim.”

“Goodnight, Spock.”

*~*~*~*

Leonard had just gotten to sleep when a call came in. Annoyed, but worried it might be an emergency, he pulled himself out of bed and in front of the comm unit in his room before he was even awake. He flipped on the comm and the image of a man with dark blond hair and bright blue eyes appeared, looking almost stern and proper in his gold uniform shirt. Leonard squinted at him and the man's expression changed, his eyes and mouth softening.

“Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't think about what time it was. I wanted to call before we got out of range of the relay station.”

“Hey, no, it's ok. Thought Pike said you were going to send a message, though.”

“Yeah, but I wanted to actually talk to you, you know, since it looks like you're my husband and everything.”

“Yeah, I guess I am,” Leonard replied, blushing. “What is your decision about that? I know Pike seems keen on keeping us married, and I've been offered an amazing job to stick with this, but I don't want you to be pressured to stay in a marriage you don't want.”

“Well, I've been made an offer myself. Seems I had a pretty bad reputation that did a one-eighty once everyone found out about our marriage. Pike has assured me I'm a lot more likely to eventually be given my own ship if we stay married. If I annul the marriage, the Admiralty will just realize that their first impression of me was the correct one. It's silly, but I have to play the political game, and those old stuffed shirts don't want a Captain with a play boy reputation. Besides, I've been thinking about it, and maybe it is time I settle down.”

“I didn't want another failed marriage,” Leonard admitted. “I know this wouldn't be the same as the divorce, but it just felt like I had messed up, again.”

“You didn't mess up,” Jim smiled gently. “I don't remember much of that night, but 'messed up' isn't an adjective I'd use to describe what I do remember.”

Leonard chuckled and looked at Jim fondly.

“So, we're going to try and make this work?” he asked after a moment.

“Yeah,” Jim replied. “We're going to try and make this work.”

“Well, alright then. Guess I better sharpen up my letter writing skills since you're out in deep space. Gotta write my husband.”

Jim just grinned.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A few letters between newlyweds... who don't know each other yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shorter chapter to be followed up by a longer chapter.

To: jtkirk.starfleet.ussenterprise  
From: lhmccoy2229.solsystem3.sec589

Dear Jim,

I'm back to work at my practice. It reminds me of why I went on that lecture tour in the first place.

I guess our marriage was a bigger deal than I thought it would be. It made the news feed here. My mama about had a fit, wondering why I didn't tell her to begin with I was running off to marry my secret lover. I didn't have the heart to tell her I had just met you. As far as she's concerned, we've been carrying on for awhile now, every time you were on Earth or I was out 'gallivanting.' I've been forgiven, so let's just leave it at that.

How are you doing? Find anything new and exciting out in the Frontier? I'm looking forward to hearing from you.

Yours,  
Leonard

 

To: lhmccoy2229.solsystem3.sec589  
From: jtkirk.starfleet.ussenterprise

Dear Bones,

I'm glad you're back to work, but I think you might want to tell your mom the truth about our marriage. My mom knows. She wasn't the least bit surprised, but really glad I'm being responsible. Did I mention I was a bit of a delinquent when I was younger? Anyhow, she's already insisting she wants to meet you and your family and she isn't on a deep space mission for five years. It's going to happen.

Tell me about your family? Any siblings? I have an older brother, George Samuel, named for our father, so we call him Sam. He lives out on Earth Colony II with his wife Aurelean and their son Peter. However, Aurelean is expecting again so I'll be an uncle again soon. Actually, WE'LL be uncles. What do you think about that? That's my entire family, besides the crew.

As for new and exciting, space is mostly empty. A lot of empty. Guess that's why we call it space. However, we did come across an interesting nebula. We're basically at a stop, studying it. The science division is in heaven; the rest of us are bored. So write soon and tell me about your family – I'm dying here.

Yours,  
Jim

 

To: jtkirk.starfleet.ussenterprise  
From: lhmccoy2229.solsystem3.sec589

Dear Jim,

First of all, who the hell is Bones? Did you go off and get married to someone else while I wasn't looking? (I'm just joking about that.) But seriously, Bones?

There isn't much to tell about my family. My dad died a few years back after a long illness. It tore me up for a long time. Pretty sure it was the catalyst for the divorce. I just wasn't emotionally available. Hell, that's why I'm even telling you about it. I killed one marriage keeping my feelings to myself, thinking I was protecting her, but I just pushed her away. So, I'm going to tell you what I didn't tell her; I'm the one who took him off life support and gave him the medications that would ease his passing. He begged me to, and I couldn't watch him suffer any longer.

I'm not just a neurosurgeon, I'm also a virologist and immunologist. At my core, I'm a research doctor, so I spent all my waking hours researching the disease that my father was suffering from, but I failed. I couldn't find the cure and I finally gave in and ended his suffering. Three months later a colleague of mine found the cure. I felt like a murderer. I barely recovered. I know I drank too much and spent too much time at work.

I'm good now; I no longer blame myself, and I no longer regret doing what my daddy asked me to do. Yeah, they found the cure three months later, but he was so far gone, it wouldn't have worked. The cure needs to be administered no later than stage two; he was at stage three, the end stages, when he died. I finally accepted that my father's death has benefited millions of others who will contract the disease because him getting it is what prompted me and my team to so aggressively research a cure.

I'm sorry, that may have been too much in one go, but that's a big part of my family history. As for the rest of my family, it's about as big as yours. My mamma, Elanora, still lives in the family home in Georgia. She was a school teacher, but she's retired now. I have an older sister, Deidre, who is also a school teacher. She's married to a man named Dwight Miller. He's a bit of a jack ass, but not a bad man. He's just got the wrong opinion about most things. They don't have children, much to my mamma's annoyance., so I'm actually kind of excited that your brother does. 

Speaking of the crew, did you know a bunch of them wrote to me right after we got married? I still can't believe you didn't know for over two weeks, by the way. They seem like a great bunch of people. I've only just got around to writing back, what with my crazy schedule, but if you don't know, I've heard from your Captain, a Mr. Spock, a Mr. Sulu, a Ms. Uhura, a Ms. Chapel, a Dr. Puri and a Dr. M'Benga, a Mr. Chekov, a Mr. Scott and a Ms. Meyers. I'm glad you have all these people who care about you so much. I'm looking forward to meeting them someday.

Yours,  
Leonard

 

To: lhmccoy2229.solsystem3.sec589  
From: jtkirk.starfleet.ussenterprise

First of all, before I get serious, let me explain my name for you. I don't remember much about the night we met, but I do remember you saying, about your ex, that she 'tried to pick my bones.' That really sticks out in my head for some reason and, I'm a little embarrassed to admit this, it's the clearest memory I have of your voice and damn, that accent was a turn on. So, Bones.

On a more serious note, no, you didn't tell me too much in one go. I'm so sorry you lost your father the way you did, and I'm glad you told me. Any doubts I've had about being able to make this work evaporated when I read your last message. I've never felt closer to someone, and I've barely been in your company. 

I guess you know I never knew my father. The fact that everyone knows that has made growing up odd and at times difficult. My mom tried, but after a family leave, she was still in Star Fleet. It's all she knows. So, she left with me and my brother with our grandfather Tiberius. Those were some of the happiest years of my life. He was the last of my father's family, not counting me and Sam, so when he died, mom brought us to her family's farm where her brother Frank lived. She didn't know what a jerk he was going to end up being to us. He had never had kids of his own, never been around them, and he drank to deal with stress. It took Sam running away from home and me driving my dad's antique car into a quarry to get mom to realize she needed to come home. Things got a lot better after that.

By the way, I told Sam all about you. Didn't really have a choice since mom called to tell him the news and he sent me a long message asking if I was out of my mind. He's been reassured, though, and now he and Aurelean are insisting that you come and visit when you get the chance, before you head off to the Yorktown. And speaking of the Yorktown and my fellow crew members, you might want to keep in touch with Sulu. His husband and their daughter will also be moving to Yorktown.

I did not know we were married because I was late and missed the mission brief that's broadcast ship wide. Captain Pike had gotten the alert about the change in my marital status and handed it over to Chekov who tagged that on to the end of the announcement. Then we were so busy, I worked, ate and passed out in my quarters for the first two weeks. I never got a chance to talk to the crew about personal news until after you spoke to Pike. They are really great people. They're my family and I don't know what I'd do without them. And now, they're your family, too. You can depend on them. 

One more thing: Isn't it great? We both have crazy middle names!

Yours,  
Jim

 

To: jtkirk.starfleet.ussenterprise  
From: lhmccoy2229.solsystem3.sec589

Dear Jim,

Ok, but I'm a little iffy about that nickname. Just do me a favor and don't get anyone else calling me that. I guess it's ok if just you call me that.

I have already heard from Hikaru again. He's also hoping that Ben and I will get in touch and hopefully become friends. I think he's worried about him making such a huge move with a small child and not already knowing anyone there. They're just over in San Fran, so I've already contacted him and we're going to get together later. And I've already heard from your mother and brother. I got the third degree, I hope you know. I also got a reaming out by my mother since I took your advice and came clean to her. I'm not blaming you, of course, you were right; I shouldn't have lied to her in the first place. She wanted me to tell you that, and that you're clearly a better son than I am. She was kidding, I think. It's ok, she'll forgive me. But I told her just in time because your mother has already been talking to her and making plans to spend a couple of days with us on her next leave, which looks like is going to be in a month. I'm terrified.

I feel closer to you, too. I'm glad you told me about your childhood. It sounds to me like if we had met under different circumstances, we would have had enough in common that we would have become fast friends. As it is, this may actually work. I'm surprised how much I want this to work. 

I can't believe the Yorktown is going to be done shortly after you and I will have been married for a year. I'm looking forward to getting the hell out of here and starting some serious research again. I never thought I'd get the chance to practice Frontier medicine. Thank you for getting blindingly drunk!

Yours,  
Bones (?)

 

To: lhmccoy2229.solsystem3.sec589  
From: jtkirk.starfleet.ussenterprise

Dear Bones,

We might actually get to celebrate our first year anniversary. Want to celebrate our six month? It's not like we remember the honeymoon, so I think we're owed. We're actually going to be closer to civilization as we know it so we can send off the data we've gathered so far and pick up some supplies. In four and a half months we'll be stopping off at the Fellows-Blankenship Colony, the most developed Federation colony at the edge of the Frontier. There's a really nice hotel there that Captain Pike recommends. Say the word and I'll get us a room. We'll only have three days, but I'd really like to spend it with you, if you can get the time off.

What do you think?

Yours,  
Jim

 

To: jtkirk.starfleet.ussenterprise  
From: lhmccoy2229.solsystem3.sec589

I think it sounds like a great plan. You know the place so go for it, get us a room. Don't skimp, I'll split the cost with you. Don't worry about the exact date, either, just let me know as soon as you know. It's a private practice, so I just have to not schedule appointments. 

I'm really looking forward to it. Let's avoid the bars, though.

Your Bones


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A long over due honeymoon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the explicit sex you were warned about ;)

It took three days to get to the Fellows-Blankenship Colony from Earth due to just how far out it was. If he hadn't been married to Jim, Leonard wouldn't have made it that quickly. Due to his husband being an officer, he was able to get spots on Star Fleet transports and to stay at star bases until the last leg of the journey, when he was able to take a civilian transport the rest of the way to the colony. 

It was nerve wracking. While the Fleet transports had seemed solid and stable, he still had issues with space travel, so he spent the time gripping his arm rests, counting down the time until they landed and he could go hide in his room. But the civilian transport felt like it was going to shake apart at any moment. He deeply regretted that the Fleet hadn't had another transport leaving that day for the colony. He was a mess of nerves until they reached orbit. There, he saw for the first time, the Enterprise in orbit. He couldn't help staring at the enormous, beautiful ship. Inexplicably, he felt a surge of pride, thinking of the man he was about to see for the first time since he woke up in a hotel room six months before.

Before he knew it, they were docked and he was stepping out into the space port, collecting his bags and looking for the embarkation area for the shuttles to the surface. As he looked, he noticed other people meeting their loved ones. His attention was grabbed by one couple in particular, a man sweeping a woman into his arms, kissing her passionately, the two of them laughing when they parted. Suddenly, he realized that he and Jim would probably be greeting each other with hand shakes at best. It made him feel awkward about their stay in the fancy hotel room. He tore his eyes away from the couple's moment, face burning and chest constricting. He felt like a damn fool for wanting that.

Leonard sighed and headed towards the shuttles.

*~*~*~*

Jim wandered towards the gate Leonard's transport was scheduled to arrive only to find that it was actually on time and the passengers had disembarked. He panicked a moment, thinking he had missed the other man, but then noticed him standing a few yards away, watching a couple greeting each other. He had been worried he wouldn't recognize him in person again. He had only seen him briefly, and he hadn't been wearing any clothes at the time. He didn't need to worry, though. He would never mistake those broad shoulders and long legs for anyone other than his husband. He walked towards him and was about to call out when he realized that Leonard was still watching the couple with a wistful look on his face. Jim's plan for a casual hug went right out the window.

“Bones!” he called.

The doctor turned towards him, a nervous smile lighting his face, and he walked towards Jim, his right hand coming out. Jim, however, ignored the hand, walking right into Leonard's personal space, sliding an arm around his waist and touching their foreheads together. Leonard's eyes were wide and his breath over Jim's lips was short and fast, but he quickly recovered and let his eyes fall shut as they both leaned in to press a careful kiss against each other's mouths. When they leaned back, the smile on Leonard's face was the widest Jim had yet to see on the other man.

“Damn, Bones,” he breathed, leaning in again and pressing another kiss to the smiling mouth and then depositing one more to a cheek. “You have the cutest dimples!”

“Damn it, Jim, shut it.”

“I will not. Come on, I wanted to ride the shuttle down with you. I've already got us checked into the hotel.”

They took seats on the next shuttle heading down to the planet's surface. Jim found he didn't like not touching Leonard, and since the doctor didn't seem to mind, he didn't resist the urge to wrap an arm around his shoulders and pull him into his side once they were settled. McCoy looked over at him, meeting his eyes with a serious gaze.

“I don't think I've mentioned I'm an aviaphobe.”

“What does that mean?” Kirk asked in concern.

“I'm afraid of dying in a tin can. Do you know what could happen if the hull of this thing got so much as a crack? You'd -”

Jim shut him up with a firm kiss, then pulled back with a smile. 

“Baby, I'll keep you distracted. Just don't throw up on me, ok?”

“I didn't throw up the entire trip here, I doubt I will now,” Leonard replied with an eyebrow lift that Jim had become familiar with from the few comm calls they had been able to have over the past six months. It was even more impressive than Spock's, as far as he was concerned. But he might have been biased.

//”Attention passengers, we are ready for take off. Please remain seated until the shuttle lands.”//

Jim leaned in and kissed Leonard again, this time touching his tongue to the seam of his mouth. He sighed happily when Leonard opened his mouth and met Jim's tongue with his own. He hadn't made out with anyone like that since he was a teenager, but he was happy to keep on kissing the other man until the shuttle landed.

*~*~*~*

Pike had good taste in hotels, Leonard decided as he set his bags down inside the door and looked around. It was a spacious suite, the sitting room having plush furniture arranged around the fireplace. Through a set of French doors he could see the bed. He couldn't even name the size. It had to be a special made size, far larger than any he had ever seen. This room made even his supposedly luxurious first honeymoon look like a week on skid row. He was curious to see what the bathroom looked like.

“Hey you, like it?” Jim asked as he wrapped his arms around Leonard from behind, kissing his neck.

“I love it,” he responded, a shiver running up his spine. “Didn't you get enough of that on the shuttle? Shouldn't we be talking, getting to know each other better?”

Jim turned him around in his arms, pulling him even closer. They were pretty much the same height, so he could look the other man square in the eye and didn't have to bend his head to kiss him. He loved how well they fit together.

“And what do you think we've been doing for the past six months?” he smirked. “Have you been holding out on me? Cause I have shared my deepest, darkest secrets with you and, I'm pretty sure, every detail of my life.”

“Now that you mentioned it,” Leonard grinned, “I don't think I have anything else left to talk about.”

“Good. Now let's get you out of these clothes. You look uncomfortable.”

Leonard discovered that Jim was a man of his word, quickly divesting both of them of everything but their boxers in short order. They stood in the middle of the room, bodies pressed close, hands caressing everything they could reach, kissing lips, necks and shoulders, until Jim pulled back and led him to the bathroom he had been curious about.

“Well, holy shit,” Leonard breathed when he saw it. “Is that a perpetual bath?”

“Yep,” Jim practically crowed, as if he himself had designed the thing. “Our own personal waterfall feeding a constantly full, perfectly warmed bath. The water is, of course, recycled.” Jim stripped off his boxers first, then tugged at Leonard's. “Wanna get in with me?”

Leonard stamped down on the sudden shyness that gripped him and pushed his own underwear down, stepping out of them and back into Jim's personal space. With a leer, he grabbed his hand and led him into the bath, finally taking charge. Leonard settled into the enormous tub first, then pulled Jim to lay against him, snug between his legs. Both men sighed as the warmth permeated their muscles. Leonard wrapped his arms around Jim's torso, one hand rubbing his abs, the other stroking over his chest. Jim, clearly enjoying the attention, turned his head where it lay on Leonard's shoulder and ran his mouth over his jaw and neck while his hands caressed the long legs surrounding him.

“This is perfect,” Leonard sighed, feeling relaxed and extremely turned on. He'd had an erection for awhile, but he could feel himself becoming painfully hard from the stimulus of finally holding his husband, naked and wet, in his arms, warm lips tracing his jaw and large hands stroking his thighs. With a moan, he traced his hands lower on his lover's torso, over his hips and the flesh of his inner thighs. “This is more than perfect.” He ran his hands up those thighs and cupped Jim's heavy balls, rolling them in one hand, while the other traveled further up to grip his cock, stroking slowly.

“Oh, yes, Bones,” Jim moaned, grinding is ass against the man behind him as best he could in the water, before braking away and turning around, despite Leonard's protests.

Leonard stopped protesting when Jim straddled his lap and proceeded to press small, breathy kisses over his face while stroking his fingertips over his manhood, teasing, fingers tracing over his entire groin before dipping down to stroke over his perineum, encouraging Leonard to spread his legs. When he did, it caused him to slip a little further into the bath, but Jim followed, kissing him more firmly and letting his fingers trace even lower, teasing the pucker of his ass. Leonard shuddered and groaned, wishing water was a better lubricant and they could stroke and touch more firmly without risking rawness. Jim clearly had the same thought because he finally pulled away and, without a word, helped Leonard up and out of the bath and into a warm towel.

The kissing and touching became more insistent after that, Jim leading him to the bed and barely letting go of him enough for them to crawl up onto it and into the center. Once he was settled on his back, Jim straddling his hips, Jim stopped and looked down at him, his expression suddenly contemplative.

“You are so beautiful,” he said, eyes taking all of Leonard in. “More than that. You're strong, handsome, breathtaking. I didn't make a mistake six months ago. I don't know what I did to deserve such an amazing stroke of luck, but I'm thinking this was the best thing to happen to me.”

Leonard looked up at him in shock. Over the past six months, he had been falling for the man he was already married to; it had never occurred to him that maybe he was falling for him, too. He honestly thought the other man felt no more than friendship and physical attraction for him. His serious, bold confession made Leonard's heart thud hard in his chest and pulled words out of his mouth he didn't think he was going to let out, at least not yet.

“I think I love you,” he blurted, eyes going wide when he realized what he said.

Jim jumped a little in surprise, but his face broke out into a wide smile, happiness radiating from him, making him seem to glow. Jim lay down on him, wrapping his arms over his shoulders while Leonard held him around his torso in a tight grip.

“I think I'm falling in love with you, Bones,” he whispered. “I'm so glad you came all the way out here. I know you'll be traveling far longer than you'll be here with me. I wasn't sure if you'd say yes. I wouldn't have blamed you if you had said no. I want to remember every moment of our time together.”

“I do, too,” Leonard replied, sincerely. “I would have traveled twice as far to spend half the time with you. Jim? Darlin'? I want you so much right now it hurts.”

Jim lifted his head and passionately kissed him, licking into his mouth and sucking his tongue, pulling sounds out of Leonard he was sure he had never made with another lover before. God knew he had never been kissed like that before. Jim didn't linger, he swiftly moved to Leonard's chest, hands stroking through the dark hair there, his mouth latching onto one nipple while the other was pinched and rolled between the fingers of the other. Leonard's legs quivered and his head rocked back and forth on the pillow, his pants and moans filling the room. He thought for sure he was about to come just from what Jim was doing to his chest.

Before that theory could be tested, however, Jim stopped his torture to Leonard's nipples and moved down, mouthing wet, sucking kisses all over his chest, his belly, his sides, stopping at a hip to lick, kiss, suck and bite at the bone. Leonard felt as if he was slowly losing his mind, his sense memory telling him this was at least partially familiar. He moaned even louder than before as Jim, looking up to meet his eyes, licked a long, hot stripe from the base of his cock to the tip, then swirled his tongue over the head, ending by licking the precum from the slit. Unfortunately, he didn't take Leonard's cock into his mouth like he wanted him to, but dipped his head down to mouth at his balls.

Leonard slammed his head back onto the pillow, relishing in the sensations, the tongue on his most private parts, the soft hair under his hand as he stroked Jim's head, trying not to pull his hair. Then Jim lifted his legs higher and swiped his tongue over Leonard's asshole, and the doctor nearly screamed.

With a devilish grin, Jim sat up and produced a bottle of lube from seemingly no where. He popped the lid open and squeezed a bead of slick out onto his fingertip, then reached down and spread it over the little furl of muscle he had just licked. He rubbed it in gently, then added more lube to his finger and began working it in. Leonard closed his eyes and pulled his legs up further, exposing himself to his lover.

“God, you're beautiful like this,” Jim crooned. “I can't believe how amazingly hot you are, opening yourself to me, letting me touch you.” Jim slicked up a second finger, working it into him next to the first one, spreading him open a bit more. “You are so tight! I know damn well I've fucked you before but you feel like a virgin. Relax for me, baby, I need to get another finger in you.”

“Just do it, Jim, please. I'm gonna come, I don't wanna come til you're in me.”

“Ok, ok,” Jim said, taking pity on him and pulling his fingers out. 

He slicked up his prick and pressed it against the still tight opening, pushing in slowly, but with steady pressure. He nearly stopped, seeing a grimace on Leonard's face that could only be pain, but Leonard had one eye open and could tell Jim was hesitant, so he wrapped his legs around his waist and pulled him toward him. Taking the hint, Jim stopped resisting and pushed harder, sliding past the sphincter and all the way into him, not stopping until his testicles were pressed firmly to Leonard's ass.

“Ah, Bones,” he cried out. “You're too tight, baby. I've gotta be hurting you.”

“I'm ok,” he panted back. “Just move.”

It was hurting, but the pain was exquisite. It had been so long since he had been taken like this, and he enjoyed the burn as Jim slowly pulled out then thrust back in, his strokes short and shallow at first, then building up until he was pulling out until just the head of his cock was inside Bones, and thrusting back in quickly. Leonard felt his rectum stretch to accommodate more and more powerful thrusts, his eyes rolling back in his head as his prostate was steadily rubbed by Jim's thick length. Finally, with a cry, he reached his climax, cum coating his stomach and chest in long stripes. The amount was amazing, though he wouldn't realize that until later; he couldn't see due to the lights exploding in his vision.

Leonard's orgasm was enough to bring Jim over the edge, the muscle contractions milking his dick, the sensations making his balls draw up. He shouted his husband's name as he spilled inside of him, filling him so full cum was leaking out of him with Jim's large member still inside of him. Jim stayed on his knees, buried inside of him, catching his breath, while Leonard recovered beneath him.

“Dear god, man,” he said once he had his voice back, looking up at Jim in amazement. “Are you still hard?”

He himself had already softened, his cock laying flaccid in a pool of cooling cum on his groin. Jim just gave him a dazed smile and lay down on him, ignoring the mess he was now getting all over himself. He kissed Leonard deeply while continuing to slowly fuck him.

“This is unusual,” he admitted with a sheepish grin once he broke the kiss. “I've never stayed hard before. I assume I'll go soft here in a minute.”

“That's ok,” Leonard smirked, wrapping his legs back around his waist and loosely holding on to his neck. “I'm good with this.”

Jim groaned and started kissing him again, sliding in and out of him slowly. Leonard relaxed; he was open from being pounded into before, and the slow pace Jim was setting while they waited for him to go soft was actually comforting. But he didn't go soft. They exchanged breathy, open mouthed kisses, licking each other's lips and the insides of each other's mouths for several long minutes, Jim never increasing the pace of his hips. Much to Leonard's surprise, he started to harden again, much sooner than he thought he would be able to, Jim becoming more firm inside of him as well, swelling back to his earlier size. They broke their kiss and Jim gazed down at him, his eyes glazed with lust.

“Oh my god,” he gasped. “Bones, baby, I'm gonna come again.”

“Yeah? Well, come on Darlin'. Come in me again.”

Jim reached between them with one hand and gripped Leonard's cock, stroking firmly, his previous load slicking the way. Leonard threw his head back and nearly blacked out as a second orgasm took him by surprise. Jim roared his completion above him, his hips stuttering but never speeding up. When Leonard finally had his senses about him again, Jim had already pulled out and was laying next to him, holding him close.

“What the hell was that?” Leonard asked, not expecting an answer.

“No idea,” Jim replied with a weak laugh, “but don't bet on it happening again.”

“I'm exhausted. I don't even feel like cleaning up.”

“I bet you are,” Jim agreed, kissing him on the forehead. “You spent three days getting here and I didn't even let you relax before I was ravishing you.”

“I'm not complaining.”

“Mmm, me neither. Let's get some sleep, though. I want to wake up to sex, breakfast, and a tour of the colony's shopping district. How does that sound?”

“Great, so long as we work some more sex in there somewhere.”

“Insatiable! Good.”

They settled together, drifting to sleep, when Bones suddenly opened his eyes.

“Where did you get the lube from?”

“I told you I got us checked into the room,” Jim replied proudly. “I have lube stashed everywhere.”

*~*~*~*

Jim did not wake up to sex. He woke up to the sounds of Leonard cursing the dried cum smeared all over his torso and over his ass. He opened his eyes to watch his husband gingerly climb out of bed and walk out of the bed chamber and toward the bathroom with a slight limp, bitching about the cum leaking out of his ass the whole way. He knew he had been too tight for him enter so soon the night before, but the man had been anxious after so long of celibacy. Jim had to admit that he had been, too. They would have to do something about that or they were going to have a similar problem the next time they met, since it was going to be just as long a gap as this time. Maybe longer.

Jim stretched, then climbed out of the large bed as well and followed Leonard's path into the bathroom. The other man was already in the shower, washing the previous night from his skin. Jim stepped in with him, not having to squeeze in the least bit. The shower stall was huge, easily fitting the two men, and it boasted shower heads on three walls and the ceiling. They didn't even have to take turns in the water.

Once Jim had washed himself off, he reached over and pulled Leonard to him, delighting in how pliant the relaxing warmth of the water and the massaging jets had made him. Bones molded his body to Jim's with a relaxed smile, dripping his head to kiss his neck and shoulder.

“I get settled in that house on Yorktown, I'm getting one of these showers for our bathroom,” he sighed as he rubbed his body against Jim's.

“Hells yes,” Jim agreed, reaching down to cup Leonard's buttocks in his hands, squeezing the firm globes and pulling their groins to rub together.

Leonard pulled back and looked Jim in the eye, then suddenly, dropped to his knees. Jim watched with rapt attention as he gripped the erection in front of his face and guided it into his hot, wet mouth. Jim groaned and wove his fingers through Leonard's hair, being careful not to pull. After a minute of Bones sucking and licking, however, he realized that the other man enjoyed him holding on firmly and guiding his head to move up and down on him. Jim nearly came when Leonard looked up at him and, with his hands on his hips, indicated he also wanted Jim to thrust. Once Jim took complete control, he dropped his hand from Jim's hips, and Jim watched as Leonard cupped his own balls with one hand and began stroking his dick with the other while Jim fucked his mouth. It was easily the most amazing thing he had ever seen and Jim nearly fell when he came, gripping Leonard's hair painfully tight, shooting his load down his throat. He could feel Bones shivering and jerking as he followed him over the precipice. 

Jim helped Bones to his feet and held him close while they both caught their breath.

“Wow. That was amazing, Bones!”

Leonard chuckled and kissed Jim chastely before pulling away and stepping out of the shower to dry off.

“You ready for breakfast, Darlin'? Cause after last night and then this morning, I'm starved.”

Jim's stomach agreed loudly.

*~*~*~*

The colony had been functioning long enough that it was now completely industrialized. While imports from other Federation planets were in abundance, they manufactured most of their own goods. The shopping plaza Jim and Leonard went to shop contained stores similar to those that they could find on Earth, including a jewelry store. Leonard grinned and dragged Jim by his hand into the jeweler's going up to a case of men's rings.

“I still have the cheap little bands they gave us on New Vegas,” Leonard explained to a confused Jim. “You can have yours, if you like, but they're pretty awful. I actually wore mine for a little while and the first time I banged my hand, the ring dented. Too soft. I'd like us to get new wedding bands. If, if you want to, that is.”

“Of course I do!” Jim exclaimed, reassuring him.

It didn't take long for a sales-being to swoop in on them and start taking out trays of Human male's rings. The two men debated over the merits of several styles until finally, they were able to settle on a pair of white gold bands, a small diamond set in the center of each. They were assured they would be sized to fit and ready by the next morning.

Leonard was feeling light on his feet, a rare feeling for him, up until Jim stopped at another store, pulling him in. He hadn't been paying attention to the store front, but he wished he had. He was pretty sure if he had put up a fight before they walked in he would have stood a better chance getting Jim to change his mind about going in, but now that they were in, he knew he wasn't talking Jim into going out.

“A sex store?!” he hissed. “What in the name of all that's decent are we doing in here?!”

“Seriously? After this morning, you're a prude?”

“That was different. The shower wasn't in public!”

“Neither is this. The windows are tinted and anyone in here is also shopping for sex toys.”

“Good lord, Jim, are you tired of me already? Need a little help to keep the boudoir exciting?”

“Wow,” Jim cringed a little at Bones' tone; equal parts sarcasm and hurt. “I don't think you have told me everything about your past that may hurt our relationship. This has nothing to do with excitement. I'm plenty excited about you. A couple can play without it meaning they're bored. Besides, I was hoping to find something here for a very specific need.”

“Yeah, what's that?” Leonard asked, moving closer to Jim again, much to his relief, but still sounding suspicious.

“Well, you know how you couldn't wait for me to get into you last night? And neither could I, which led me entering you too soon, and hurting you?”

“You didn't hurt me,” Leonard protested, his face hot with embarrassment. 

“Ok, you were limping this morning just for the hell of it,” Jim rolled his eyes. “I figure the reason was neither one of us have had sex from the time we got married until last night.”

“Well, I sure haven't,” Bones agreed, raising an eyebrow.

“And neither have I. And later, when I'm begging you to fuck me, I'm probably going to be too tight, too.”

Bones continued to turn an interesting shade of red, though Jim couldn't tell if he was even more embarrassed or turned on.

“So, what did you have in mind?”

“Nothing that will fix it right now,” he said, finally getting Leonard to follow him further into the store, and down an aisle with dildos, “but hopefully make things easier next time.”

They perused the offerings, stopping to show each other wild dildos they found in the non-Human sections before actually getting to the Human section, then Jim at least was shopping in earnest. He was pleased that Leonard seemed to be having fun, but he did notice that he looked around himself every time, before picking a package up, making sure they were still the only ones on the aisle.

“Yes! They do have it!” Jim exclaimed, finally arriving at a section labeled 'Multi-Humanoid' at the end of the Human area, picking up a somewhat hefty, rectangular package. He excitedly waved it at Bones.

“What the hell?” was the response he got, but by this point, he wasn't surprised.

“You get erect and make a mold of your dick, then cast a fleshy dildo out of it! It's perfect. While we're apart we can fuck ourselves with replicas of the other's dick! By the time we get back together, it won't be so hard to get each other ready for anal.”

“That's... disturbing. But it makes sense,” Leonard finally conceded as Jim picked up a second box. “But you're buying it! I'm waiting outside!”

He was gone before Jim could blink.

“My poor, dainty, Southern Belle,” he sighed to himself, and then chuckled all the way to the register.

*~*~*~*

Bones had eyed the nondescript package suspiciously the rest of their day out.

“Come on,” Jim had pleaded. “No one's gonna know where the bag came from. That's why it's plain.”

“Yeah,” he argued. “It's the only plain bag we've got. Everyone who sees it is going to know we're a couple of wanton hussies.”

“Seriously? 'Wanton hussies?' Are those words even part of the twenty third century English dialect? You really are my delicate little Southern Belle,” Jim teased, stroking Leonard's hand.

Leonard snatched his hand back, scowling at being called that. He was not amused. But Jim was.

Leonard was in a much better mood after lunch when they found a rather large liquor store. He helped Jim pick out bottles to restock his bar, choosing familiar favorites as well as a selection of unfamiliar beverages from around the sector. By the time they were done, Jim had spent enough to make the proprietor extremely happy, and he had the heavy package wrapped and sent directly to the ship.

“That was a lot of alcohol,” Leonard teased good naturedly. “Didn't you learn your lesson last time?”

“Sure did,” he shot back, “and I doubt it would go as well if I got that drunk on the ship. Especially if there was a red alert.” He didn't see the way Leonard's expression went blank at the mention of the danger Jim was in every day. “That alcohol will last me a long time. I hadn't restocked in over a year, except the occasional bottle of whiskey. I entertain, too, mostly the Captain and Lt. Sulu. Spock, too, but he drinks tea. I really wish you could see my quarters, but they don't often allow civilians on board.”

Leonard wrapped an arm around Jim's waist and kissed his cheek.

“I know, Darlin',” he whispered, hating to see him suddenly sad. “You'll just have to send me pictures when you get it set back up.”

“Yeah,” he pressed his forehead against his, and sighed. “Ready to go back to the hotel room? I'd really like to be alone with you now.”

“Yes I am. Alone sounds good.”

They headed back, and when they got through the door and put their bags down, Jim wasted no time pulling Leonard into his arms and kissing him passionately, pulling at both of their clothes while leading them to the bathroom. When they sank into the perpetual bath this time, Jim lay back and pulled Leonard on top of him, caressing his back and bottom while the other man took control of the kisses.

“Hand me that body wash,” Bones said as he broke the kiss and sat up. Jim obliged and sat up with him.

Slowly, Leonard lathered Jim's torso, hands massaging and caressing as he went, mouths coming together in soft, closed mouth kisses. Jim filled his own hand with body wash and imitated is lover, washing and rinsing him in return. When done, they stood and continued, washing each other's lower bodies, stoking erections, palming testicles and rubbing between butt cheeks, fingers teasing little, furled rose buds. Once they were rinsed, they stepped out and dried off. McCoy took control this time, leading Kirk to their bed.

He didn't speak, just climbed to the middle of the bed and got on his knees, sitting up on his heels. He pulled Jim to sit on his thighs, his back to his chest, and took the lube offered him to prepare Jim for him. Leonard didn't remember the first time he had taken his husband like this, but he suddenly had a sense memory of his tight heat gripping his fingers, of his moans, of his head laid back on his shoulder and the taste of his clean skin as he kissed and sucked his neck.

When Leonard pushed in, he felt light headed from the way Jim's rectum clung to his cock and the way Jim's hands clung to his. Jim had dropped his chin to his chest, breathing heavily, and Leonard kissed all along his back and shoulders as he thrust in and out of him, slowly bouncing the man he held on his lap. Leonard reached between Jim's legs, gripped his cock with a hand still slick with lube, and stroked.

“Oh, damn, Bones... Oh damn... Fuck! I love you, oh my god Bones, I love you.”

Leonard was pretty sure the head of his cock scrapping over Jim's prostate was what prompted the confession, but he didn't care. In that moment, just the two of them, wrapped in pleasure, Leonard hadn't loved anyone more.

“I love you, too, Darlin',” he panted, his thrusts becoming faster and more erratic. “I love you, Jim.”

They came together in a blinding light, waking up on their sides, curled together.

“Did we fall over?” Jim asked, voice rough from screaming.

“Looks like.”

“Let's not move.”

“Yep.”

“Let's just sleep.”

“Way ahead of you.”

They didn't wake again until well past dinner. Thankfully there was twenty six hour room service.

“Hey, Bones,” Jim grinned after a leisurely dinner, holding up a familiar package. “Ready to make a dick?”

“Damn it, Jim. I'm a doctor, not a pervert.”

“Not sure those two things are mutually exclusive.”

“Well, I'm not sure I can get hard for that.”

“You just leave that up to me,” Kirk winked.

*~*~*~*

Leonard was looking around the room, one last time, making sure they hadn't forgotten anything. Jim just sat in a chair, watching him, an almost forlorn look on his face. They had made love on pretty much every surface that was large enough to hold them, but Jim didn't think it was enough, despite every part of him being sore. He had always wondered how Hikaru did it. Now he was desperate to know because he honestly didn't think he would survive being away from his husband. It was just six months ago that he was only staying married to this man because of Pike's strong suggestion; now, he couldn't imagine his life without him and he dreaded being without him for another six months, at least.

“We ready?” Leonard asked once he was done.

“No,” Jim smiled sadly as he met him by the door and took his hand, “but we have to leave.”

“Jim, I...” Bones began, only to be interrupted when his comm sounded with a priority chime. “Hold on. Damn it! My first transport's been canceled!”

“Don't worry, we'll...” Jim was interrupted as well by him Star Fleet communicator. “Kirk here.”

“Commander,” the tinny voice responded. “Captain Pike would like to know if you and Dr. McCoy are ready for beam up.”

“Me AND Dr. McCoy, Lieutenant?”

“Aye sir.”

When he looked over at Bones, the doctor just shrugged, looking as confused as he felt.

“Uh, yes, yes we're ready. Two to beam up. Our luggage is at our feet.”

“Aye sir. Beaming now.”

Moments later, they were in the transporter room of the Enterprise. With a grin, Kirk looked over at his partner, only for the smile to drop from his face and for him to reach out to steady him.

“Bones? You alright?”

“God, damn, I never want to beam again. I'm not sure if all my molecules got put back together right.”

“Um, this is how you're probably going to have to leave the ship.”

“Saint's above.”

As they were stepping off the transporter pad, Captain Pike walked in, Spock close behind him.

“Dr. McCoy!” he greeted, until he saw the man. “Commander Kirk, is he alright?”

“He will be, sir. First time in a transporter. Just a little rattled.”

“Well, that's normal. It's something you'll adjust to. It's nice to meet you in person.”

“You as well, sir,” McCoy replied, shaking the hand offered.

“Bones,” Jim interjected, motioning towards the science officer at Pike's heels. “This is Spock, co worker and friend. Spock, Leonard McCoy.”

“It is very good to meet you, Doctor.”

“Good to meet you, too. Please, you can both just call me Leonard.”

“Thought you might want to see where your husband lives and works before you leave, Leonard,” the Captain smiled. “Come on, we'll show you around a bit. Don't worry about your bags, the Lieutenant here will keep an eye on them.”

They left the transporter room, Pike taking point with Leonard beside him, one hand on his shoulder as he spoke to him about the different sections of the ship they would be seeing and Jim's responsibilities on board. Kirk walked behind them, next to Spock, holding him back and letting the other two get ahead of them just a few feet.

“What's going on, Spock?” he asked, one eyebrow raised. “I'm not familiar with Pike giving spouses tours of the ship.”

“True,” Spock agreed. “However, you are his First Officer, a close working relationship that is only improved by getting to know members of your family.”

“Ok, so why are we going to Rec Room One while he's talking up Engineering?”

“I do not know to what you refer.”

“Sure, Spock, sure,” he replied sarcastically, knowing the Vulcan would just continue to play dumb.

Jim closed the space and took his spot by McCoy's side just as they arrived at Rec Room One, Pike still going on about the warp core, even as the doors opened. Inside, the majority of the senior officers, dressed in off duty clothing and holding drinks, waited inside. A couple rushed over and put drinks into the hands of the new arrivals while Pike and Spock took places at the head of the crowd, facing the dumbfounded couple.

“A toast to Commander James T. Kirk and Dr. Leonard H. McCoy, may their marriage be long and may the wind always be at their backs,” Pike said, voice and glass raised.

“Cheers!” everyone else shouted, then broke into applause and began approaching the men to meet Leonard and give them both their best wishes.

“Why?” was all Jim could ask when he finally got to Pike and Spock again.

“You didn't invite us to the wedding,” the older man mock complained, “so we threw you a reception.”

“You did say you wanted gifts,” Spock agreed, motioning to a table loaded with wrapped packages.

“You canceled Bones' transport out?”

“Yep,” Pike grinned. “But don't worry. We're heading in about the same direction. We'll get him to his third transport. So, you two kids have one more night.”

“Thanks, Captain,” Jim said sincerely, turning to watch Leonard chatting and laughing with the crew. “Really, thank you.”

*~*~*~*

The party went on for hours. After the initial round of hand shakes and introductions, the two grooms were sat down in the middle of the room and Scotty passed them their presents, everyone watching them open, Uhura taking pictures to send to everyone later. Then everyone wanted pictures together, Connie sandwiching herself between them and kissing Leonard on the cheek. Jim was glad she had accepted his apology (and readily believed he would manage to get married while drunk and not know for two weeks). Then there was an actual wedding cake and food and more alcohol. Jim got misty eyed more than once, grateful for how readily his family was embracing their newest member.

When it was finally over, Jim helped his tired, and slightly tipsy, husband to his quarters. When the door slid open, he felt relieved to be home and a surge of possessiveness he couldn't explain for the man in his arms. He wished he could keep him there always. When Bones looked at him, Jim didn't give him a chance to say anything, just took his mouth in a bruising kiss, roughly pulling him flush against his body. A thrill of victory went through him when he felt the other man grow instantly hard. Jim picked him up bridal style, shocking a yelp out of the doctor, and carried him to his bed.

“I want my bed to still smell of you when you leave,” he whispered in his ear. McCoy could only nod his consent; his voice was gone in a haze of lust.

Kirk spent the rest of his last night with his husband making his entire room, not just the bed, smell of their love making.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It will probably be awhile before I update this again, but when I do it will be several more chapters at once and it will probably be complete.


End file.
